The present disclosure relates generally to the field of terrain awareness for aircraft. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to systems and methods that display data regarding potentially dangerous terrain or locations of interest near an aircraft.
Aircraft pilots rely on situational awareness systems, such a terrain awareness and warning system (TAWS), weather radar systems, and/or a traffic collision and avoidance system (TCAS), to avoid collisions with hazards, such as terrain, man-made structures, weather, and other aircraft. A typical TAWS may analyze aircraft sensor data and/or other data to predict whether the path of the aircraft is likely to intersect with hazards, such as terrain and/or man-made structures. For instance, such systems may compare an altitude of the aircraft to elevation of terrain near the aircraft and provide an indication of terrain that has a high enough elevation to be of potential concern to the pilot. The TAWS may provide the aircraft pilot and/or other flight crew members with advance audio and/or visual warnings of impending terrain or structural hazards, as well as forward looking capability, thereby providing sufficient time for flight crew to implement appropriate corrective maneuvers and/or other safety measures.
In order to comply with, for example, Technical Standard Order TSO-C151c, class A equipment for a TAWS must depict terrain relative to an aircraft's position such that the pilot is able to estimate the relative bearing to the terrain of interest. The terrain must also be depicted relative to the airplane's position such that the pilot is able to estimate the distance to the terrain of interest. However, despite current advances in facilitating the situational awareness of a pilot regarding his or her surroundings, quickly estimating the relative bearing and distance to the terrain of interest from aircraft situation display images remains challenging and difficult. Current TAWS configurations typically show an aircraft's “own-ship” position as well as visually distinct terrain or structures of interest, with hazardous terrain distinguished from nonhazardous terrain. As such, pilots are often limited to performing quick and rough mental estimations of bearing and distance to terrain of interest based on the TAWS display at the same time as performing other critical tasks and functions, such as determining and executing appropriate corrective measures. Accordingly, there exists a need for systems and methods that enhance a pilot's ability to quickly discern information regarding the location of terrain or structures in relation to an aircraft or flight path.